Gorteria diffusa subsp. calendulacea (DC.) Roessler

국표에 없다.

Gorteria diffusa is a highly variable, small annual herbaceous plant or rarely a shrublet that is assigned to the daisy family (Compositae or Asteraceae). Like in almost all Asteraceae, the individual flowers are 5-merous, small and clustered in typical heads, and are surrounded by an involucre, consisting of in this case several whorls of bracts, which are merged at their base. In G. diffusa, the centre of the head is taken by relatively few male and bisexual yellow to orange disc florets, and is surrounded by one complete whorl of 5–14 infertile cream to dark orange ray florets, sometimes with a few ray florets nearer to the centre. None, some or all of them may have darker spots at their base. The fruits remain attached to their common base when ripe, and it is the entire head that breaks free from the plant. One or few seeds germinate inside the flower head which can be found at the foot of plants during their first year. The species flowers between August and October. It is called beetle daisy in English and katoog (cat eye) in Afrikaans. It can be found in Namibia and South Africa.

Gorteria diffusa is initially erect, but quickly develops into a creeping annual of 2–20 cm (0.79–7.87 in) high that may sometimes survive and change into a shrublet. It is very variable in the number, shape, color and spots of the ray florets, and fourteen discrete forms have been distinguished. Its stems are branching at the base and often also more towards the end of the stems. They are reddish or green in color, and are set with long stiff hairs. The leaves near the base are 2½–9 cm (1–3½ in) long and 2–10 mm (0.079–0.394 in) wide. The leaves on the stems become gradually smaller further toward the tip, and may be ½–5 cm (0.2–2 in) long and 1–10 mm (0.04-0.4 in) wide. They are widest below midlength, mostly entire, but sometimes pinnately incised, with many stiff hairs on the upper surface, and the margins curled downward.

The flower heads are at least 2 cm (0.8 in), but mostly 3–5½ cm (1.2–2.2 in) across. The eighteen to thirty-two green or reddish bracts have red or blackish tips and together compose a pitcher-shaped involucre, which later becomes more inflated and woody. The free tips of the involucral bracts cover at least the upper two-third, are initially more or less upright but bend out later. This involucre encloses one complete, and sometimes a second incomplete whorl of somewhat overlapping infertile ray florets, in some forms seven to nine, in other forms twelve to fourteen, which may range in base color from almost white, through yellow to orange, with the underside ranging from grayish to dark orange-brown. These may have a darker zone at the base that may be clear yellow or orange-brown. There may also be yellow marking on all ray florets or dark blotches on some or all of them. Ray florets with blotches may be relatively small and brighter colored compared to those without or have the same size and color. These egg-shaped, oval or narrowly oval ray florets reach at least as far out as or more often much further than the involucral bracts, are 10–23 mm (0.39–0.91 in) long and 2–6 mm (0.079–0.236 in) wide, have an pointy or blunt tip with mostly four teeth. The dark blotches are raised or flat, dark green, brown or purple with black, with one to four small white spots, with stripes and sometimes hairy away from the base. Within the whorls of ray florets are thirty to forty yellow or orange disc florets, each star-like with five lobes, the outer circle bisexual, those at the center functionally male. The disc florets have hairs on the outside, sometimes more near the top and few or many very short glandular hairs. The style has two branches, less so in the male florets in the center of the disc.

The one-seeded, indehiscent fruits (called cypselas) are about 4 mm (0.16 in) long and have an asymmetrical pear shape, flatter facing the center of the flower head, the surface hairless near its foot, but felty hairy near its tip, and without ribs, sometimes with globe-shaped glands and twisted twin hairs. The pappus is absent or consists of a minute fringe.

Gorteria diffusa - Wikipedia

 

https://youtu.be/D8f_7AhBzT4